I brought my Peugeot 308 into a garage to have some panels resprayed.
Once the respray was complete, they told me that there was a problem with the car and it wasn't starting.
Now, after 5 weeks, they've told me that it's the body control module that needs replacing. The car was in perfect working order before going in. They told me that this part can break unexpectedly.
body control module break without warning?
Replacing a body control module because you got them to respray some panels sounds like a scam to me. Unless spraypaint got into it, there is no reason it would break. And even then, they would be at fault, because it was working perfectly when you came in, you said.
If they insist and you can't get them to repair it at their cost, i'd let another garage do the repair. (also gets you some form of second opinion) If that's not possible and they have to do it, at least ask for them to give the old body control module to you when they're done. That way they can't get money off of taking parts of your car and selling them on Ebay. They may charge you for taking the old part, but that's pure BS. It's not even legal in my country. I'd resist if they ask that.
I know i sound exceptionally suspicious, but believe me these kind of situations are not unusual. Running a garage alone doesn't make you very rich, so there's many unfair mechanics that try to bump their income a bit this way. No offense to the fair and honest mechanics here though.
I guess I'll be the dissenting argument. Most auto shops don't scam people. Online reviews have made "word of mouth" information available to everybody. They just can't get away with this stuff any more as easily.
BCMs do go out without warning and at random. It's a computer. Although water damage will cause them to die, many failures are without a clear cause. It's very likely that this issue would have happened in your driveway if your car hadn't been in the shop. Shops are very used to this sort of complaint. The "I took it in for wiper blades, and now X is broken" complaint. There's probably as many crooked customers trying to pull one on shops using this method as there are crooked shops out there, maybe even more. Most shops are just honest guys trying to earn a living.
Talk with them. Don't threaten them. Don't bring in lawyers, letters from lawyers, or threaten legal action. Try to resolve things without involving the courts. If you aren't satisfied with the shop, have it towed to a different shop. Then, if there's any evidence of foul play, deal with it. Going in looking for a fight is probably not the best strategy though.
